Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Sunday directed the health department to work out a viable proposal to check the sale of illegal drugs at chemist outlets.

He suggested the health officials to delegate more power to Senior Medical Officers to raid and take the required action against chemists selling illegal drugs in the state.

Badal, in a meeting with a delegation of Bharti Kisan Union (BKU), said the Punjab government was committed to eradicate drug menace from the state. BKU members claimed that due to the shortage of Drug Inspectors in the state, required action was not being taken against chemists selling illegal drugs in rural areas.

Badal asked Health and Family Welfare Minister Madan Mohan Mittal, who was also present in the meeting, to take early necessary steps in this regard. Badal said it was the responsibility of the Centre to safeguard the international borders and take effective measures to check the drug trafficking through intensified patrolling by the BSF and other Central Para-military forces which were directly under its control.

He demanded a ban on the open sale of poppy husk in Rajasthan, saying it was posing a great threat to Punjab. Badal informed the delegation that government had prepared a comprehensive plan to repair 13,000-km link roads at a cost of Rs 1,700 crore. Responding to another demand of BKU, regarding the one-time settlement scheme to settle the loans of the farmers, he agreed to extend the scheme up to June 30, 2013.